# Roles/characters that couldn't be played by any other actor/actress **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 2, 2020, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756 "2020-01-02T01:50:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/61 "2020-01-03T02:56:20Z")
> [@Tinker\_Grey](#): > > {Emphasis Added} > > That hair, though! Stewart once said he started going bald when he was nineteen, so all through his career, if a role requied hair, it was a wig or toupee. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/62 "2020-01-03T03:03:20Z")
Christopher Reeve as Superman. I grew up watching George Reeves on TV, but even a childhood memory couldn’t overcome the utter conviction Reeve brought to both the Clark Kent and Superman characters. It also helped that Reeve looked like he was drawn by Curt Swan. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/63 "2020-01-03T04:19:00Z")
Can you imagine Deadpool being played by anyone other than Ryan Reynolds? I can’t. > [@Horatio\_Hellpop](#): > > A few years ago, we would have agreed that Heath Ledger owned the character of the Joker, and the role should have been retired forever with his passing. \*\*Turns out damn near _anybody_ can play the Joker pretty well. > \*\* > Before we retire Tony Stark forever, let’s give Jeffrey Dean Morgan a shot at the character, or even Keanu Reaves. You’d be surprised how many Hollywood actors can credibly play a syphilitic douchebag with addiction issues. ::cough, cough:: Jared Leto, _Suicide Squad_, ::cough:: ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/64 "2020-01-03T04:40:37Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Don Adams as Maxwell Smart in Get Smart. I thought Steve Carrell did a pretty good job. We haven’t mentioned many women in this thread, so I’ll highlight Audrey Tatou in _Amelie_, one of the most delightful, funny, and charming films I’ve ever seen. It’s one of my all-time favorites (I just happened to watch it again a few night ago) and she is just perfect in the role. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/65 "2020-01-03T05:39:02Z")
> [@dorvann](#): > > OK I know everyone here is mentioningd movie and TV actors. But for a slightly different answer I have to say-- as pro wrestling fan for over three decades now—I’d be hard pressed to think of another wrestler who could played the character of The Undertaker as long and as effectively as Mark Calaway has. Take that back! Brian Lee as the Fake Undertaker nailed it! 😛 J/K, but at least he was better than the fake Diesel and Razor Ramon! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![carlb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carlb/32/5930_2.png) [@carlb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carlb)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/66 "2020-01-03T13:38:30Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#): > > Harrison Ford as Han Solo and Indiana Jones. As demonstrated by the Solo movie or considering an alternate universe where Tom Selleck was Indiana Jones (as he almost was in our universe), the character just doesn’t work with anyone else playing the role. Yes, IMHO they are basically the same character. It is impossible for me to picture “Han Solo” and not see Harrison Ford. He did a great job with that character, and deserves to be the movie star he’s become. However… Kurt Russell was under consideration for Han Solo. At the time, I think everyone knew him from a slew of Disney movies, and he had something of a clean-cut, boy-next-door charm to him. looking at IMDB, he was mostly doing TV guest spots, with a couple of steady roles on shows I’ve never heard of. On the one hand, he was a more established actor than Harrison Ford, and would have brought a little bit of name recognition to “Star Wars.” On the other hand, public perception might have worked against him. Would everyone accept a former Disney star as a rogue and a smuggler? But then four years later, Russell hits the big screen as Snake Plissken, and the year after that he’s in “The Thing,” and from then on he’s able to have roles as legitimate bad-asses, as well as comedic roles and some good dramatic performances. I could make an argument that Jack Burton in “Big Trouble in Little China” is just a comedic take on Han Solo. I think this is one of the more interesting “what-ifs” in movie casting. I’m a fan of Kurt Russell’s, so I’m probably too biased, but in my opinion he _could_ have done an excellent job. He would have to have been the kind of actor that could do a lot of his own direction, as Lucas is famously not good at directing actors, but something tells me he could have been quite good. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/67 "2020-01-03T14:04:38Z")
> [@carlb](#): > > I think this is one of the more interesting “what-ifs” in movie casting. I’m a fan of Kurt Russell’s, so I’m probably too biased, but in my opinion he _could_ have done an excellent job. He would have to have been the kind of actor that could do a lot of his own direction, as Lucas is famously not good at directing actors, but something tells me he could have been quite good. The Han Solo role has to have someone with the _right_ kind of charisma. Not just handsome and rogueish looking, but the right sort of smart-assed wisecracking sang froid. Harrison Ford has it, Kurt Russell has it, as evidenced in “Big Trouble in Little China”. Tom Selleck, while possessing the looks and a lot of charm, doesn’t really have that same smart-ass charm. Thomas Magnum wasn’t quite the smart-ass that Solo is- he’s definitely kind of roguish, but not the same kind of rogue. Ryan Reynolds could probably do it, if he toned it down a bit- Deadpool is a bit TOO smart-assey ---
**Author:** ![jerez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c68b51/32.png) [@jerez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jerez)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/68 "2020-01-03T14:37:13Z")
Jeff Bridges as The Dude. IMO, this is in the others-could-do-it-but-not-as-well category, and maybe a little more than that. ---
**Author:** ![Boycott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boycott/32/6741_2.png) [@Boycott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boycott)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/69 "2020-01-04T13:09:22Z")
David Suchet as Hercule Poirot ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/70 "2020-01-04T15:22:07Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Ian McKellen as Gandalf. On this subject, I know when I heard they’d cast Elijah Wood as Frodo I said to myself, “Wow, that makes perfect sense.” ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/71 "2020-01-04T15:48:22Z")
> [@Boycott](#): > > David Suchet as Hercule Poirot I thought Peter Ustinov played him well. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/72 "2020-01-04T16:03:59Z")
How about Robin Williams in Good Morning Vietnam, which I thought really took advantage of his ad libbing with the DJing scenes? Same, too, with his role as the Genie in Aladdin. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/73 "2020-01-04T16:42:57Z")
Honestly, I think in both cases Robin Williams did his thing, and they built the film around it. I think I read that’s how they animated the genie in Aladdin; he did the vocal performance and they animated to fit. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/74 "2020-01-04T17:58:37Z")
Irene Ryan as Daisy Moses (“Granny”). Many actresses auditioned for the role, inclding Bea Benaderet (eventually cast as “Cousin Pearl”), but the seach ended when Irene read for it. ---
**Author:** ![SuperNelson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7feea3/32.png) [@SuperNelson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuperNelson)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/75 "2020-01-04T22:31:47Z")
> [@Horatio\_Hellpop](#): > > Who could top Rex Harrison as Professor Henry Higgins? Or Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley? To be fair, I really liked what Harry Hadden-Paton did with the role in last year’s Lincoln Center revival. His Higgins was a petulant man-child, which made Eliza a stronger character. ---
**Author:** ![HyacinthBucket](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hyacinthbucket/32/3063_2.png) [@HyacinthBucket](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HyacinthBucket)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2020, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/76 "2020-01-13T05:38:41Z")
When an actor writes a role intending to play the part themselves, it’s probably easy (and fun) to make that role theirs alone. John Cleese wrote and described Basil Fawlty as a “brilliantined stick insect” because that described himself exactly as the character he envisioned. I challenge any other actor to fit that description and create that character so perfectly. There can only be one Basil Fawlty. 😃 Now if we’re talking about roles **not** written with a specific actor in mind but that ended up fitting someone like the proverbial glove to the point of where I can never see anyone else in that role - Katharine Hepburn as Eleanor of Aquitaine in **The Lion In Winter**. Absobloodyfrickinlutely PERFECT. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2020, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/77 "2020-01-13T06:49:04Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > **Arnold Schwarzenegger** - _Terminator, Terminator 2_ - He’s become a self parody of his character after the squeal, but if someone would to build a killer android, it would HAVE to look like Arrrnold. Well, not really. It’s always bothered me that the whole point of sending something humanoid instead of just an overt killbot is to blend in, and yet they chose a body shape that only a handful of humans worldwide have. (I think the fanwank is that the android skeleton is chunky enough to need a big body – but then we can ask, why not make it look like an obese human?) I like Schwarzeneggar, and think his character and imposing figure helped sell the film of course, but I’m not sure if that’s the same thing as saying that he’s perfect for that role. It’s not hard to think of movies that would have sold better with Arnie at the helm, but made less sense. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2020, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/78 "2020-01-13T09:13:49Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > I thought Steve Carrell did a pretty good job. > > We haven’t mentioned many women in this thread, so I’ll highlight Audrey Tatou in _Amelie_, one of the most delightful, funny, and charming films I’ve ever seen. It’s one of my all-time favorites (I just happened to watch it again a few night ago) and she is just perfect in the role. I’ll follow that with: Toni Collette, “Muriel’s Wedding” Charlize Theron, “Monster” ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2020, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/79 "2020-01-13T11:48:58Z")
Nobody’s mentioned Jack Nicholson yet! His play in _One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest_ was special. Some of his other roles also qualify I think. Some others come to mind, but I’m stymied by my lack of imagination to see others in the role. It’s not quite the same thing, but Nick Nolte was special in _The Good Thief_, about which Roger Ebert wrote: “it is clear that [Nolte] was born to play Bob. It is one of those performances that flows unhindered from an actor’s deepest instincts.” ---
**Author:** ![kitap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@kitap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitap)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2020, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756/80 "2020-01-13T12:01:02Z")
Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester. Tom Selleck as Magnum. And, frankly, Edward Woodward as The Equalizer. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/roles-characters-that-couldnt-be-played-by-any-other-actor-actress/845756.md?page=5)